Taiwanese flag carrier China Airlines has been in the news of late, following its launch of fifth-freedom flights from Melbourne to Auckland as an extension of its existing route from Taipei to the Australian city. As Simple Flying reported at the start of the month, these services are a productive way of using the time between flights that would otherwise be spent with the aircraft sitting unused on the ground.

China Airlines’ aircraft of choice for these flights, and indeed many of its longer-haul sectors to destinations in Europe and North America, is the Airbus A350. This next-generation widebody is the carrier’s newest twin-aisle passenger aircraft by average age, and its different classes of travel mean that there is a product to suit everyone. Let’s check out its longest non-stop routes with China Airlines.

China Airlines’ A350 fleet in a nutshell

According to present fleet data made available by ch-aviation, China Airlines has 15 examples of the smaller Airbus A350-900 variant in its fleet at the time of writing. Of these, 14 are currently listed as being active, while the 15th and final example is undergoing maintenance procedures at the Taiwanese flag carrier and SkyTeam member’s main Taipei Taoyuan International Airport
(TPE) hub.

China Airlines
‘ units of the Airbus A350-900 are 7.3 years old on average, compared to a fleet-wide mean figure of 9.6 years. Data from aeroLOPA shows that the carrier has two different configurations for the type, each of which has three classes of travel onboard. The first of these is present on 14 aircraft, and features 243 economy class seats, 31 premium economy recliners, and 32 business class flatbeds.

Meanwhile, the carrier’s 15th Airbus A350, which it received from Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) in 2023, has 228 economy class seats, 32 premium economy recliners, and 40 business class flatbeds onboard in a marginally more premium-heavy configuration. For those interested in what the onboard experience is like, you can read our recent review of the luxurious business class cabin here.

Los Angeles has the two longest routes

According to current scheduling data from Cirium, an aviation analytics company, China Airlines is operating 869 flights with its modern Airbus
A350-900 widebody twinjets this December. Its usage will see the type deployed on an interesting range of both short and long-haul routes, with the most far-flung destination served by these aircraft this month being the city of Los Angeles in the US state of California.

Interestingly enough, the so-called ‘city of angels’ actually has two of its airports served by China Airlines, with these being the furthest and second-furthest A350 destinations from the carrier’s Taipei hub. The absolute longest of these routes connects Taipei with Ontario International (ONT), which, at around 38 miles (61 km) from downtown Los Angeles, is more than a viable secondary airport.

This route clocks in at a whopping 6,830 miles (10,992 km) in length, and is set to be served seven times in each direction this month by China Airlines’ Airbus A350-900s. The outbound sector takes 11 hours and 25 minutes, while the flights back to Taipei are considerably longer, at 14 hours and 45 minutes. You can find out more about why China Airlines flies to Ontario in our recent analysis piece here.

China Airlines Airbus A350 Landing In Taipei

Photo: Simon Tang | Shutterstock

Meanwhile, the city’s main airport, simply called Los Angeles International and known worldwide by its three-letter IATA code of LAX, is situated 6,799 miles (10,942 km) from China Airlines’ Taipei hub. The Taiwanese flag carrier has scheduled 15 rotations between Taipei and LAX this month, and faces competition from EVA Air and Starlux Airlines on the route, which is also well served by cargo carriers.

Other US West Coast airports also rank highly

As it happens, China Airlines has a fairly considerable presence on the West Coast of the US, with its activities in this part of the world not limited to its flights to and from Los Angeles and Ontario. Rounding out the podium in terms of the carrier’s A350 routes by distance this December is San Francisco International Airport (SFO), which is situated 6,469 miles (10,411 km) away from Taipei Airport.

China Airlines Airbus A350 In Vilnius

Photo: Adomas Daunoravicius | Shutterstock

China Airlines’ frequencies are relatively low on this route, with just three rotations scheduled for December. As well as facing competition from the aforementioned EVA Air and Starlux Airlines on this route, there are also direct non-stop flights from US legacy carrier and Star Alliance founding member United Airlines to contend with. According to Taiwan’s CAA, SFO is Taipei’s ninth-busiest route.

Further up the coast in the Pacific Northwest region of the US, Washington State’s Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA) is China Airlines’ fifth-furthest-flung A350 destination this December. The facility is located 6,074 miles (9,775 km) from Taipei, with the Taiwanese flag carrier scheduled to operate 23 flights in each direction along this transpacific corridor this month using the 306-seat jets.

China Airlines Airbus A350 Inflight

Photo: KeleX Pictures | Shutterstock

This is another route on which the airline faces competition from the likes of EVA Air and Starlux Airlines. While United Airlines is not present on the route as is the case with San Francisco, US legacy competition still exists in the form of China Airlines’ fellow SkyTeam
member Delta. Interestingly, China Airlines and EVA Air’s cargo subsidiaries both also operate flights from Taipei to Seattle.

A sole Canadian route

Carrying on up the West Coast of North America and over the border into Canada, Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is also one of the most distant destinations served by China Airlines’ Airbus A350-900 widebodies this month. Located 5,972 miles (9,611 km) from Taipei, this route is the seventh-longest for the type at China Airlines this December, and it will only be served twice in the middle of the month.

China Airlines Airbus A350 Landing At Sunset

Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying

The lower levels of demand for this route are also reflected by the comparative lack of competition. Indeed, while China Airlines’ US-bound A350 routes see it go toe to toe with Starlux Airlines and American legacy carriers, its only direct competitor on the route to Vancouver is EVA Air. The outbound flights have a block time of 10 hours and 25 minutes, while the return takes 13 hours and 5 minutes.

London is the most distant European destination

While North America represents an important market when it comes to China Airlines’ long-haul operations, if we look in the other direction we can see that its European route map is also rather extensive. This December, the carrier’s longest European route with the Airbus A350-900 serves London Heathrow (LHR), which is found at the northwestern extremity of a 6,090-mile (9,801 km) hop from Taipei.

China Airlines Taipei London Route Map

This route, which is China Airlines’ fourth-longest overall this month in terms of non-stop operations with the A350, will be served 17 times in each direction in December 2024. Flying out to London, the scheduled block time is a whopping 16 hours and 35 minutes, while the return flights to Taipei are planned to take exactly 13 hours. Once again, the sole competition on the route comes from EVA Air.

As pictured above, a key reason for the fact that these flights take longer than those to the West Coast of the US, despite being shorter in distance, is due to their routing. With Taiwanese planes unable to fly over neighboring China due to political tensions, they must take the long way around on flights to and from Europe. Contrastingly, flights to the US and Canada can fly straight out over the Pacific.

Other European big hutters

The rest of China Airlines’ 10 longest non-stop routes that are scheduled to be served by the Airbus A350-900 this December also serve Europe, this time in the form of destinations on the continent’s mainland. The next longest of these, and the sixth overall, connects Taipei with Rome Fiumicino (FCO), some 5,981 miles (9,625 km) away. 13 outbound and 12 inbound flights are planned this month.

China Airlines Airbus A350 Landing In Tokyo

Up next, and eighth overall, is China Airlines’ route to Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS) in the Netherlands. This route is 5,878 miles (9,460 km) in length, and allows passengers to connect onto short-haul flights operated by Dutch flag carrier and fellow SkyTeam member KLM at the airport. KLM itself also serves this route on a non-stop direct basis, as well as, you’ve guessed it, Taiwanese carrier EVA Air.

Across the border in neighboring Germany, Frankfurt Airport (FRA) is the destination of one of China Airlines’ most frequently served A350 routes this December. Indeed, the carrier plans to operate 29 flights from Taipei to Frankfurt this month, alongside 30 inbound rotations. The German hub is located 5,830 miles (9,382 km) from Taipei, and China Airlines has a rare monopoly on this Asia-Europe corridor.

China Airlines Airbus A350 Taxiing In Los Angeles

Rounding out the list as China Airlines’ 10th-longest non-stop route with the Airbus A350-900 this month, Václav Havel Airport Prague (PRG) is situated some 5,610 miles (9,028 km) away from Taipei. This is another example of a route on which China Airlines has a passenger monopoly, with this also being the case for its cargo sector. The carrier has scheduled nine A350 rotations to Prague this month.

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